FBR to make recovery from jewelers, real estate agents in money laundering cases

ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Tuesday issued rules to make recovery from jewelers and real estate agents under money laundering cases.

In this regard the FBR issued SRO 290(I)/2023 dated March 06, 2023 to apply recovery rules on Designated Financial

Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs), which includes jewelers, real estate agents and accountants.

The FBR is Anti-Money Laundering (AML)/ Counter Financing of Terrorism (CFT) regulatory authority in respect of its reporting entities, that is to say real estate agents, jewelers, dealers in precious metals and precious stones and accountants who are not the members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan and the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan.

In terms of clause (c) of sub-section (2) of section 64 of the said Act, the said AML/CFT regulatory authority shall exercise the powers and perform the functions with respect to its reporting entities, inter alia, to-

(i) issue regulations, directions and guidelines with respect to sections 7 A to 7H of the said Act; and

(ii) impose sanctions, including monetary and administrative penalties to the extent and in the manners as may be prescribed, upon their respective reporting entity, including its directors and senior management and officers, who violate any requirement in sections 7(l), 7(3) to 7(6) and 7 A to 7H of the said Act and any rules or regulations made thereunder or those who fail to comply with the TFS (targeted financial sanctions) regulations and whereas any person aggrieved by the imposition of sanctions under this clause may prefer an appeal in such manner and within such period to such authority as may be prescribed;

The FBR said that in terms of sub-rule (3) of rule 6 of the AML/CFT Sanctions Rules, 2020, the said AML/CFT regulatory authority may follow its existing process, if any, or prescribe the process for recovery of penalty under the applicable law;

NOW, THEREFORE, in exercise of the powers conferred by clauses (c) and (h) of sub-section (2) of section 6,4 of the said Act, read with sub-rule (3) of rule 6 of the AML/CFT Sanctions Rules, 2020, the Federal Board of Revenue being the AML/CFT regulatory authority in respect of its reporting entities is pleased to notifu that only the procedure with regard to recovery of the income tax as prescribed in Chapter XVI of the Income Tax Rules,2002, with necessary modifications, including the following, consistent with the provisions ofthe Anti

Money Laundering Act, 2010 (VII of 2010) and rules and regulations made thereunder shall apply for recovery of the monetary and administrative penalties imposed under the AML/CFT Sanctions Rules,2020 as if therein,-

(a) for the expression “Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 (XLIX of 2001), the expression “Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010 (VII of 2010)” were substituted;

(b) for the expression “Chapter XVI Income Tax Recovery Rules”, wherever occurring, the expression “Chapter XVI Monetary Penalty Recovery Regulations for DNFBPs, 2023” were substituted;

(d) for the words “tax recovery”, wherever occurring, the words “monetary penalty recovery” were substituted;

(e) for the words “debt”, “tax” and “araear” wherever occurring the words “monetary penalty” were substituted;

(f) for the word “notice”, wherever occurring, the expression “notice in writing under rule 7 of the AML/CFT Sanctions Rules, 2020” were substituted;

(g) for the word “Commissioner”, wherever occurring, the expression “Director (DNFBPs)” were substituted;

(h) for the word ‘taxpayer”, wherever occurring, the expression “DNFBP” were substituted; and

(i) for the words “Inland Revenue”, wherever occurring, the expression “Directorate of DNFBP” were substituted.